A Baby's Cry
by AmethystWren
Summary: One-shot. The war is over, Roran's gone to visit Nasuada, and Katrina is sitting with their daughter. Who, being the young lady she is, starts to cry. Luckily, someone who can help overhears. Because you'd have to be pretty heartless to watch a baby cry.


**A little something that jumped on me earlier. I guess it's quite sweet, in a way.**

**Disclaimer- I do not own the Inheritance Cycle or any of the characters from it used in this little story.**

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><p>It was a hot, sunny day, the sort which only ever comes with the summer. Nasuada had called Roran to see her- something that confused them both, as the war was certainly over- and Katrina sat in front of their tent with their daughter in her arms. Ismira was only a few days old, but her crying was loud enough to drown out the battle cries of many a grown man.<p>

But, for the moment at least, she was sleeping, and her mother was watching her peaceful little face with a sense of pride she could never have found the skill, nor the time, to put into words. For such a description would be the length of a short story all on its own.

Someone shouted, and Katrina's head shot up. It was Birgit, scolding one of her twins for picking on the other. The familiarity of the scene only added to Katrina's feeling of joy and peace. The war was over, her daughter was safe in her arms, and everything was going to be alright.

Her smile fell as Ismira was awoken by Birgit's shouting and began her screaming. Katrina's eyes dropped to her crying daughter, lying in her arms, screaming her little head off.

Katrina stood up, trying her absolute best to calm her child. But her rocking had no effect, and every soothing word she muttered may have well as been a hateful curse, for all it did was make the baby scream louder.

"Shh!" She whispered gently, rocking her daughter in her arms. "It's alright. You're safe. It's fine." But still her words had no effect.

So absorbed was she in trying to soothe her daughter that she didn't notice the dark-haired young woman beside her until said woman put a hand on her wrist. Katrina's brown eyes followed the arm, which was covered by a long, plain sleeve. Katrina noticed that, for such a plain dress, it was fringed with some very beautiful black lace. Katrina's eyes moved upward, and locked with the woman's. They were blue. And not green-blue, or grey-blue, but simply _blue_.

"Please," The woman said, in a voice that was delicate, yet somehow harsh at the same time. "Let me try." She held out her arms.

Katrina looked from her wailing daughter to the stranger and back again. With a reluctant sigh, she placed Ismira in the woman's waiting arms, though she watched the pair carefully. If the woman tried _anything_, Katrina would no about it. She was still quite protective over her little girl.

The strange, dark-haired woman held Ismira close, whispering words that no-one safe for her and the baby could hear. Ismira stopped her bawling, and looked up at the woman with a curious expression etched upon her tiny little face. Then, her tiny features broke out into a smile.

The woman seemed unfazed. She handed Ismira back to Katrina and began to walk away.

Katrina looked down at her baby, who looked to be in her happiest frame of mind to date, and back to the retreating dark-haired woman.

"Wait!" She called. The woman stopped and turned back round. "What did you do?"

"I stopped your daughter's crying." The woman replied.

"But… how?" Katrina pressed. This lifted a small smile from the woman's previously wry mouth.

"With the right words." The woman stated. "I had a sister… Once…" And the smile faltered, briefly came back, but then it disappeared again, replaced with that look of relative annoyance she had worn before it.

There was silence, but the woman made no attempt to leave. Katrina smiled softly, attempting to break the tension.

"Well," She said, deciding to try her hand at complimenting this strange, dark-haired woman whom her daughter had apparently taken a fancy to. "You must've been a very good big sister to her." Katrina thought she saw an anger flash in the woman's blue eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly as it came, if it was there at all.

"Apparently not good enough." She hissed. Now, the woman took her leave once more. Katrina watched after her anxiously, feeling somewhat guilty. She couldn't quite place why, but soon realised it was because she didn't even know the name of this woman. This fantastic woman, who came along and hushed her crying, inconsolable baby daughter.

"Wait!" Katrina shouted, for the second time. The woman turned round, the annoyance on her face ever present. "What's your name?"

"Trianna." The woman replied. Katrina was sure she'd heard the name before, but where she did not know. Eragon, she decided, must have mentioned her name when telling one of his adventures to them over dinner. And no doubt Roran had spoken of her too.

"Thank you, Trianna." Katrina said, with a smile. And she meant it. Trianna smiled back, a genuine smile, and turned away.

Katrina let her go this time, sitting back down outside the tent with her now quiet daughter, waiting for her husband's return.

As she sat, she listened to the wind in the trees and the birds flitting by. She saw the woman, Trianna, sitting beneath a tree. Alone. And she wondered whether or not she should go and talk to her. But Trianna seemed content, and Katrina didn't want to intrude on her privacy, so she left it.

Even when she swore she saw a little golden snake slide out from beneath Trianna's wrist and slither round her arm, perching by her neck just as Blagden did for Islanzadí. Because she was sure, if she wasn't just imagining it, that the woman was far more content with that snake by her side.

As content as her now sleeping daughter, at any rate.

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><p><strong>Sorry if Trianna was a little OOC in this but, if I'm honest, I don't think Trianna is as evil as people say. Selfish, yes. Manipulative, yes. But she's with the Varden in the long run, right? She's not that<em> bad<em> in my eyes, just not quite all good.**


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